JP2002337628A - Retaining method for and retaining structure of electrical junction box and connector holder - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a retaining method for and a retaining structure of an electrical junction box and a connector holder capable of realizing reduction of the number of parts, facilitating a retaining work and reduction of wastes. SOLUTION: An expanded part 24 of a string body 23 integrally formed with the connector holder 20 is inserted into an insertion hole 26 formed on a junction box 12 and if the string body 23 is deviated to a side in such a state and is inserted to an locking hole 25, the expanded part 24 is locked with an edge of the locking hole 25 and the string body 23 is not removed from the locking hole 25. Thereby, the junction box 12 and the connector holder 20 are connected to each other by the string body 23. Thereby, a conventional clip band can be disused to realize reduction of the number of parts. Since the locking can be released by a procedure contrary to the above procedure, wastes is not also generated as compared with the case where the clip band is cut conventionally.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method and structure for holding an electric connection box provided on a harness assembled to an interior panel of an automobile and a connector holder for accommodating a plurality of connectors connected to the harness.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In general, when a harness is mounted on an instrument panel (hereinafter referred to as "instrument panel") and transported, a plurality of connectors provided in the harness are housed in a connector holder, and the connector holder is connected to a connector holder. It is held in part of the instrument panel. Conventionally, as the holding structure, for example, a so-called clip band is inserted into a through hole formed in the connector holder and the instrument panel, and both ends of the clip band are engaged with each other. Also, at the destination, the clip band was cut and the connector holder was removed from the instrument panel.

[0003]

However, in the above-mentioned conventional holding structure, a clip band is separately required, so that the cost is increased. Further, in order to lock the clip band, a complicated operation of holding both ends of the clip band and engaging the both ends with each other while holding the connector holder adjacent to the instrument panel is required. Was. Furthermore, in order to release the locking of the clip band, cutting is required, and there is a problem that the cut clip band becomes dust.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and has been made to reduce the number of parts and to facilitate a holding operation.
An object of the present invention is to provide a method and structure for holding an electric connection box and a connector holder, which can reduce dust.

[0005]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for holding an electric connection box and a connector holder, the electric connection provided in a harness mounted on an interior panel of an automobile. A method of holding a box and a connector holder for accommodating a plurality of connectors connected to the harness, wherein a mounting portion integrally formed on one of the electric connection box or the connector holder is provided on the other. It is characterized in that both are handled integrally by being locked to.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a structure for holding an electric connection box and a connector holder for storing an electric connection box provided in a harness assembled to an interior panel of an automobile and a plurality of connectors connected to the harness. A holding structure with a connector holder, wherein one of the electric connection box or the connector holder has a mounting portion which can be integrally handled by being locked to a mounted portion provided on the other. It is characterized by being integrally formed.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the holding structure for holding the electrical junction box and the connector holder according to the second aspect, the attachment portion is formed on a string and a tip end of the string. And the bulging portion that protrudes laterally, while the attached portion is formed continuously with the insertion hole into which the bulging portion can be inserted, and the cord body is allowed to pass through the insertion hole. However, the bulging portion is constituted by a locking hole that can be locked, and the mounting portion is disposed on the connector holder, while the mounted portion is disposed on the electric connection box. It has features.

[0008]

According to the present invention, the mounting portion integrally formed on one of the electric connection box and the connector holder is locked to the mounted portion formed on the other. By doing so, the electric connection box and the connector holder are integrally held. Thus, the conventional clip band can be eliminated, and the number of parts can be reduced. Also,
Since the locking can be released in a procedure reverse to the above procedure, dust generated when the clip band is cut does not occur.

According to this configuration, since the locking portion composed of the cord and the bulging portion is arranged on the connector holder, the connector holder is moved by holding the cord with one hand, and the connector is moved as it is. The bulging portion at the tip of the cord body is inserted into the insertion hole arranged in the electric connection box, and the cord body is inserted into the locking hole from the side to lock the bulging portion to the edge of the locking hole. Thus, the holding operation can be performed. That is, unlike the conventional case where both ends of the clip band are locked, it is not necessary to use both hands, and the holding operation is facilitated.

[0010]

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG.
A description will be given based on FIG. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 10 is
An instrument panel as an interior panel of an automobile has a harness 11 attached to the back of the instrument panel 10.

The harness 11 is composed of a plurality of electric wires, and a plurality of electric wire groups are branched from the electric wire groups.
A plurality of terminals are configured. A junction box 12 is provided at a predetermined terminal, and a plurality of connectors 13 are attached to other terminals.

The details of the junction box 12 are shown in FIG. 2, and a metal terminal 15 is fixed to a housing 14. The housing 14 is made of, for example, polypropylene (P) to which glass fibers are added to improve heat resistance.
P), a pair of arms 16, 16 stands upright at the upper edge of the housing 14 in FIG. 2 from both ends thereof. And each arm 16
The junction box 12 is fixed to the housing 14 as shown in FIG. 1 by screwing a bolt (not shown) passing through a through hole 17 formed at the tip of the instrument panel, for example, to the lower edge of the instrument panel 10. ing.

When the instrument panel 10 and the harness 11 are assembled and transported to an automobile assembling factory, the plurality of connectors 13 are accommodated in a connector holder 20. The connector holder 20 is shown in detail in FIGS. 3 (A) and 3 (B), is made of polypropylene (PP) containing no glass fiber, and has a container structure in which one side of a rectangular parallelepiped is opened. A plurality of connector engaging portions 22 are provided on the inner wall of the recess 20A of the connector holder 20, and the connectors 13 are fixed to the connector engaging portions 22.

The connector holder 20 and the junction box 12 are provided with a holding structure for holding both. This holding structure is a connector holder 2
A bulging portion 24 is provided in the cord body 23 integrally formed with the ridges 0, and the bulging portion 24 is locked in a locking hole 25 formed in the housing 14 of the junction box 12. More specifically, it is as follows.

A flange 21 is formed to protrude laterally from an opening edge of the recess 20A provided in the connector holder 20, and a cord 23 extends from an outer edge of the flange 21. In the plan view of FIG.
The cord body 23 rises sideways from the flange 21, is rounded, is bent at a right angle to the left side in the figure, an intermediate portion extends in parallel with one side of the connector holder 20, and
It is curved in the shape of a hairpin on the way, and has a structure in which the tip portion also extends in parallel with one side of the connector holder 20. In addition, in the side view shown in FIG. 3B, the string body 23 has a structure in which a rising portion extends obliquely upward from the flange 21 in the same figure. in this way,
The cord body 23 has a curved structure, and its length is ensured.
On the other hand, the bulging portion 24 has a spherical shape and is disposed at a position slightly proximal to the distal end of the cord 23.

On the other hand, the locking hole 25 has, for example, a long hole shape extending downward from the round insertion hole 26. The insertion hole 26 has a size that allows the bulging portion 24 to be inserted, and the locking hole 25 has a width that allows the bulging portion 24 to be inserted but the cord body 23 can be inserted from the insertion hole 26 side. Dimensions are set.

Next, the operation of this embodiment having the above configuration will be described. When the harness 11 is mounted on the instrument panel 10 and transported, the plurality of connectors 13 provided at the terminals of the harness 11 are engaged with the connector engagement portions 22 provided in the connector holder 20. Thereby, the plurality of connectors 13 are held in a state of being accommodated in the connector holder 20. Then, in order to lock the connector holder 20 to the junction box 12, the connector holder 20 is moved toward the junction box 12 by holding the cord 23 integrally formed with the connector holder 20. At this time, as shown in FIG. 4A, the cord body 23 is pulled and stretched linearly. Then, the bulging portion 24 provided at the distal end of the cord body 23 is inserted into the insertion hole 26, and the cord body 23 is shifted laterally into the locking hole 25 as shown in FIG. insert. Here, if the hand is released from the cord body 23, the cord body 23 is placed under the locking hole 25 (the lower end in FIG. 4B) by the weight of the connector holder 20 and swells. Part 2
4 is locked to the edge of the locking hole 25. Thereby, the cord body 2
The junction box 12 and the connector holder 20 are connected to each other by the string body 23.

On the other hand, at the destination, the connector holder 20
Is removed from the junction box 12. In this case, contrary to the above procedure, the string body 23 may be shifted above the locking hole 25 and the bulging portion may be aligned with the insertion hole 26 and pulled out.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, since the connector holder 20 is connected to the junction box 12 by the cord 23 integrally formed with the connector holder 20, the conventional clip band can be eliminated and the number of parts can be reduced. Is reduced. Also, in the reverse procedure to the above procedure,
Since the lock can be released, there is no generation of dust as in the case of cutting a conventional clip band, and a cutting tool is not required. In addition, since the cord 23 is arranged on the connector holder 20 side of the junction box 12 and the connector holder 20, the cord 23 is held with one hand to move the connector holder 20, and the tip of the cord 23 is expanded as it is. The protrusion 24 can be inserted into the insertion hole 26 formed in the junction box 12 to perform a holding operation. Therefore, unlike the conventional case where both ends of the clip band are locked, it is not necessary to use both hands, and the holding operation is facilitated. Further, the connector holder 20 does not require heat resistance as compared with the junction box 12 and is made of a relatively soft synthetic resin (polypropylene containing no glass fiber).
Can have flexibility.

<Other Embodiments> The present invention is not limited to the above embodiments. For example, the following embodiments are also included in the technical scope of the present invention.
In addition to the following, various changes can be made without departing from the scope of the invention. (1) In the above-described embodiment, the cord body and the bulging portion are arranged on the connector holder side, and the locking hole and the insertion hole are arranged on the junction box side. May be arranged on the junction box side, and the locking hole and the insertion hole may be arranged on the connector holder side.

(2) The bulging portion in the above embodiment has a spherical shape, but may have a rectangular parallelepiped shape or an elliptical spherical shape, for example. (3) In the above-described embodiment, the case where the bulging portion formed at the tip of the cord body is locked in the locking hole has been described. The present invention also includes a connector holder and a junction box which are held together.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an instrument panel according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of a junction box.

3A is a plan view of the connector holder, and FIG. 3B is a side view of the connector holder.

FIG. 4A is a perspective view showing a state before the bulging portion of the cord body is locked in the locking hole. FIG. 4B is a perspective view showing a state in which the bulging portion of the cord body is locked in the locking hole.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Instrument panel (interior panel) 11 ... Harness 12 ... Junction box (electric connection box) 13 ... Connector 20 ... Connector holder 23 ... String body 24 ... Swelling part 25 ... Locking hole 26 ... Insertion hole

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A method for holding an electric connection box provided on a harness assembled to an interior panel of an automobile and a connector holder for accommodating a plurality of connectors connected to the harness, wherein the electric connection box or the connector is provided. A method for holding an electrical connection box and a connector holder, wherein the holder is integrally formed on one of the holders and the mounted part provided on the other side is engaged with the holder so that the holders are integrally handled. 2. A holding structure of an electric connection box provided on a harness assembled to an interior panel of a vehicle and a connector holder for accommodating a plurality of connectors connected to the harness, wherein the electric connection box or the connector is provided. An electrical connection box and a connector holder, wherein one of the holders is integrally formed with a mounting portion that can be integrally handled by being locked to a mounted portion provided on the other. Holding structure. 3. The mounting portion includes a cord body and a bulging portion formed on the distal end side of the cord body and protruding laterally, and the attached portion includes the bulging portion. And a locking hole formed continuously with the insertion hole and allowing insertion of the cord body, but capable of being locked to the bulging portion. The holding structure of an electric connection box and a connector holder according to claim 2, wherein the attached portion is arranged on the electric connection box while being arranged on the connector holder.